Could have been nasty!

SCR Pedro

Hey there,

I'd like to recommend that people don't be as daft as I am.

I was out today, and my bike was rattling more than usual. I thought it was the headset, because it's wearing out and requires frequent adjustments. I decided to pay it no attention and continued my ride which takes in a couple of 50kph descents.

When I got home, I noticed my front skewer had come undone and the front wheel was wobbling around. Could you imagine the consequences of the wheel continuing down the road without the rest of the bike!?!?!

Next time I hear a rattle, I'll pull over and check it out (probably after the 50kph descent).

Cheers
Pedro

Tranced

I try check everything before a ride, but mostly because if I were to base my rides on my road bike's rattles..... I'd never put a leg over it.

SCR Pedro

I usually do a pre-ride check of my bike. I have no idea how the skewer worked its way loose. I suppose rattles are the bikes way of telling you that you are about to crash if you don't fix it.


Pedro

geoff_ss

I usually gently pick my bike up and drop it on the ground (only a few inches). That will show up lots of things needing attention from an insecure load (some of us actually carry stuff on our bikes ) to wheel bearings or headsets needing adjustment and will reveal anything that's a bit loose. It's not a substitute for proper maintenance but can be a useful check, as is trying the brakes as you wheel the bike out of the shed.

I did once arrive home after stopping off to do a bit of shopping on the way from work to find my front wheel skewer released. That scared me a bit as the ride involved a fast descent and it was a very old frame lacking those 'lawyer's lips'. I can only guess that someone had flicked it open (possibly accidentally, possibly as a prank) while I went into a shop. My little quick check would have revealed the potential hazard but it's not something I do halfway in a ride.

Geoff

jamespiggot

I was riding a sportive in Wales and had a similar experience, they had timing chips at the start that you fix inside the front QR which I did, so halfway around this ride I notice the QR lever is pointing downwards which I remember thinking was strange as I always take car to tuck it in behind the front fork, being tired and stupid it took a couple of minutes to register, gave me a fright but I think with current bikes all have a lip on the front drop-out that prevents the wheel from coming off unless the QR is totally loose. Then again there are people who find that annoying and file it down to make getting the front wheel off a bit faster.

doobie919

This reminds me of the time I watched my next door neighbor faceplant it coming down a hill when his front wheel came undone and slid out of the forks. Man that was a nasty sight.

Ever since then I always make sure my QR's are in proper tight order, and that everything is running smooth.

2Fast4Love

For some reason I've got in the habit of thinking about this mid-commute.

Sometimes when I stand up to blast up a hill, the rear wheel has felt a bit... wobbly? a bit... light? And I find myself still blasting up the hit but looking back under my arms to try to check that everything is in order.

One day, there will be a mess. :roll:

iain_j

Coming down a hill once in Wales i decided not to bother slowing down for a cattle grid and clattered over it at about 30mph. For the rest of the descent (about 2 miles) my bike was making so much noise i thought it was going to fall apart, especially going over bumps - on this road there were lots. I was nervous to say the least! Stopped at the bottom of the hill and gave the bike a quick check and nothing was loose, and eventually it silenced itself. I slow down for cattle grids now

mark_oakden

I had a rattle that was worrying me on a new bike (my first road bike). I wondered about the headset for some time, but eventually thought I'd narrowed it down to the interrupter levers (aka cross levers) that came fitted on the tops.

It was only after several miles of trying to remember to hold these lightly to damp the rattle over rougher road patches that I realised that the rattle was coming from elsewhere - it was the two gear cables knocking together where they curve past each other in front of the STIs. :oops:

(Trying to damp the cross levers to rule them out of the rattle was probably the longest I've ever spent on the tops.)

chuckcork

I've had this myself a few times, after the 3rd time of the QR skewer releasing itself from a fully tightened position I just replaced it, haven't had the problem since!

Have also as noted had the headset area do this too, result of tightening up the bolts of the stem before tightening the headset bolt, when it should have been the other way around.

But those little rattles can be very hard to find when they only happen out on the road, and the roar of traffic drowns out the little sound you get when doing the dropping the bike thing....

c12345

Was MTBing with a friend years ago now, going down a firetrack at some speed, but his speedo was bust and he wanted to find out how fast, so in an act of dawinism he tried to nudge the transmiter on the front fork with his foot.

Unsurprisingly, he went over a bump, foot goes into the front wheel, and does slightly less than one rotation before stopping jammed against the fork, popping half the spokes and turning him and bike into a human waggon wheel.

I now treat spinning things with way more respect than they deserve.

fossyant

Just have a bike that doesn't rattle or creak - I don't do rattles...they drive me nuts..

Headhuunter

I agree re lifting the bike and dropping it a few inches. I do that a couple of times before getting on, especially if it has been parked outside in public, in case some hilarious joker has decided to do something like release the QR levers or something